Scientific Fraud
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Scientists faking their data affects all scientific research. Most experiments are based off of other experiments that have already been done and if theres false data then it could change the conclusion of the tests and it could alter the results. If scientists didnt “fudge” their data then there could be more cures for diseases. Technology could advance and new discoveries could be made. The counterargument to that statement, though, is that if scientists only change their data a little bit on the small stuff, they can get bigger grants to make more important discoveries. But how does a person measure the “small stuff” and the “big stuff”? I think that it doesnt matter when a person lies or fudges data, because out of their small lie could come another experiment that could turn out to be false because they based it on someone elses data.
Its not okay no matter who it is. If a student in a classroom sees that the person next to them got a different answer and they change it so it matches the other persons answer, theyre not learning anything. Data varies and the fact that the student changed it to try and get a better grade is really sad. Also, if the student changes their results so they match their hypothesis then its not helping them learn anything. When scientists change their results to match their hypothesis its not doing them any favors either. If anything they should change their hypothesis instead of their data.
If a scientist looks at the data and the first thing they think of is “what do I want the data to tell me” theyre looking at all of science entirely wrong. Its not about what you want the data to tell you, its about what it does tell you, and what it means. If scientists selected just the points that prove their hypothesis theyre being completely unethical and misinforming the public and other scientists.
The only problem is how to tell if a scientist is lying or not. Dr. Mann is completely correct when he states “Its easy to transpose two digits in recording a number or press the wrong key on a computer keyboard,” but making a mistake is different from faking data. Yet, a scientist could claim that they had just made an error in recording their data if theyre accused of fraud. Its so hard to tell the difference, so many